Movies: What we learned this summer

As a new moviegoing season begins, there are lessons aplenty from the one just ended.

1. The early bird sometimes does get the worm. "The Avengers" got out of the gate early, launching the summer season May 4. Since then it has grossed $620 million in North America and almost $1.5 billion worldwide, thanks in part to a 3-D surcharge -- which rival comic-book flick "The Dark Knight Rises" ($431 million) did not.

2. Some men just want to watch the world burn. Michael Caine's Alfred uttered that memorable line in "Dark Knight," but it applied more than ever when a Colorado man opened fire during a midnight showing of the film.

You can take the movies out of this world, but you cannot take this world out of the movies, which meant some families and others decided to wait for the DVD. The incident reignited debate about gun ownership and recognition and treatment of apparent mental illness and spawned accounts of fools trying to bring weapons into theaters as if smuggling in dollar-store candy.

3. You sunk my box office. "Battleship," the action picture based on the board game, cost a reported $209 million but made only about $65 million in North America. Clearly, nostalgia for games don't necessarily translate into box-office appeal.

Other surprising underperformers: "The Watch," a muddle about an alien invasion that lost the "Neighborhood" part of its title after the death of Trayvon Martin in Florida; "Step Up Revolution," the fourth installment in the dance series that could use a Channing Tatum visit; "That's My Boy," a particularly awful Adam Sandler comedy; "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," a bust based on the popular novel; and "Rock of Ages," a music-soaked adaptation of the play starring Tom Cruise as a sexy rocker.

4. You talkin' to us? On paper, "Ted" might have seemed like the most absurd concept of the summer. An 8-year-old boy tells his new Christmas gift of a teddy bear, "I wish you could really talk to me because then we could be best friends forever and ever." His wish comes true, and Ted the bear grows up to smoke pot, invite hookers over and drive buddy John (Mark Wahlberg) to work. Seth MacFarlane, director, co-writer and the voice of Ted, reeled in young men and their dates along with plenty of other moviegoers.

5. Ladies' night never goes out of fashion. "Magic Mike" was the ticket for groups of women looking for what we called "a wonderfully low-fat summer treat." The R-rated movie was inspired by Channing Tatum, who worked as a stripper for eight months when he was 18 and 19 years old. He's still got the moves.

6. Everyone's a critic. Never was this driven home more than when two young brothers sobbed (and we do mean sobbed!) over the fate of the title character in "The Odd Life of Timothy Green." Their parents uploaded video of their hysterical heartbreak on YouTube, and it went viral, prompting strangers to react to their reaction to the PG-rated movie.

7. Give studios an A for animation. Parents pretty much could not lose, whether they took their children to see "Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted," "Brave," "Ice Age: Continental Drift" or "ParaNorman." It has been a remarkable year for animated movies with such standouts as "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax" and "The Pirates! Band of Misfits," although the best didn't need 3-D to be appreciated. Still to come are another half-dozen releases, including "Finding Nemo" and "Monsters, Inc." in 3-D, Tim Burton's "Frankenweenie," "Hotel Transylvania," "Wreck-It Ralph" and "Rise of the Guardians."

8. It's good news-bad news at the box office. More people have gone to the movies this year than last, but when you look only at estimates for the summer, attendance is down about 4 percent and box-office gross off by almost 3 percent, according to Hollywood.com.